A Shift In The World

At the moment when the Devouring Void sigil was inscribed on Silax, a wave of energy spread all through Artiyaem, felt only by a select few.

In a part of Artiyaem, where sand dunes where the only thing visible for miles, a remorseless sun beat down on a lone traveler. The desert wind, hot and dry, whipped sand against her exposed skin. Her hood, the color of sun-bleached bone, did little to shield her face from the relentless glare.

Despite the harsh environment, she moved with a practiced grace, her desert boots silent on the dunes.

Suddenly, a tremor ran through the world, subtle yet undeniable, a ripple in the very fabric of the world itself. A prickling sensation crawled up her spine, a primal warning deep within her being.

Her eyes, the color of a summer sky, scanned the desolate landscape, but the desert, vast and silent, offered no answers.

The tremor subsided as abruptly as it began, leaving an unsettling quiet in its wake. The golden skinned elf stood frozen as the desert wind whispered around her.

- - -

In a temple somewhere deep under the sea, a blue light shined from the ceiling, casting an ethereal glow on the cylindrical tank that held an elf. She drifted within, weightless, her long, silver hair fanning out around her head like a luminescent halo.

Transparent tubes snaked from the intricate harness that cradled her, each one connecting to the nape of a several elves arranged in a circle around the tank. These elves were all female, their chests rising and falling in rhythm with each other.

Then a jolt spread through her body. It wasn't the familiar thrum she felt when one these elves awakened. This was different, more of a ripple, a tremor that vibrated through her very core and resonating deep within her.

Her eyes snapped open, a flicker of emerald piercing the blue light of the temple. She strained against the harness, the weight of a terrifying possibility pressing down on her. A desperate hope flared within her.

Maybe, just maybe, this tremor was a sign, not of the end, but of a new beginning. With newfound determination, she focused on the pulsing energy within her, the wellspring responding with a surge of vibrant power.

- - -

Deep within the mountains, an old elf sat in meditation, his attire mirrored the cave's darkness, midnight-hued leather armor adorned with intricate silver runes.

He knelt upon a moss-covered stone platform, his eyes closed, and his brow furrowed in deep concentration. The only light came from sporadic amethyst crystals embedded in the cavern walls, casting a purple glow in the dark cave.

Suddenly, a flicker of movement at the cave entrance caught his attention. He snapped his eyes open, their depths sharp with newfound alertness.

A young elf with auburn hair cascading down his back , stood at the entrance of the cave. His tall physique was framed by the cave mouth. His eyes held a mirrored seriousness, reflecting the same alertness has the older elf.

"Father, did you feel it?"

His voice was barely a whisper.

The old elf rose fluidly from his meditative pose.

"Yes, I did. A tremor in the very fabric of reality, the likes of which I haven't felt since..."

He trailed off, the weight of the past heavy on his tongue. 

The young elf stepped into the cave, the amethyst light catching the glint of worry in his eyes.

"There's only one explanation, another one has been chosen."

The old elf's gaze locked with his, a silent understanding passing between them.

"We need to find them before the others."

- - -

An elf stood poised on a white cloud, his pristine white attire fitted tightly onto his skin. His short black hair, stood out against the backdrop of the boundless cerulean sky.

Below him sprawled a city in the clouds, glittering like a pearl necklace strung across the heavens. Delicate bridges of shimmering energy connected the city's spires.

He wasn't focused on the city's beauty today. His gaze was distant, as it stretched beyond the horizon of the city. A subtle pulse had just rippled through the world.

He raised a hand, his fingers instinctively twitching towards his right eye. There, a black eyepatch, devoid of any straps or ties, adhered perfectly to his skin.

With a sigh that ruffled the cloud beneath him, he closed his good eye, focusing all his senses inward. Then he opened his eye and spoke.

"So it begins."

- - - 

Silax sat on the floor next to Elara, she was still unconscious showing no sign of waking up anytime soon. He wasn't aware of anything going on in his surrounding because right now his attention was directed at the spot between his eyebrows.

He focused on his glabella, in his vision was in a wide encompassing space where the Devouring Void floated. This was the Nexus, a space where elves inscribed elemental sigils and stored orenda, the energy needed to wield these sigils.

The sigil rotated, the points on the octagram writhing around like they were searching for something to grab on to. The sigil didn't feel as ominous as when it was first inscribed, it just floated they silently.

'Even though I have a sigil now, it doesn't grant me any ability. I can now sense and absorb orenda but can't do anything with the absorbed energy.'

'I've also tried to inscribe the Air Sigil, which is the only one I know, but it doesn't work. I'm not sure if it's because I have not mastered this dark sigil or if it's truly impossible like that thing said.' 

Silax opened his eyes and looked at the leaf in his hand, he had tried channeling some energy into the leaf, but that had no effect. He was careful not to picture anywhere in his mind, or to conjure the intent of leaving this place.

He took his pack off his back and stored the leaf away. In his pack was the book on vampyres, one he figured was probably an artifact. That seemed the only explanation to it being able to display more information depending on his state as a vampyre.

He decided to do something more productive with his time, he still had to figure out a way to leave this place and get back to Scola within the timeframe when the sun wasn't out. Although he had the leaf of Asorin that was something he felt was to precious to be used willy-nilly, it would be saved for emergencies only.

He also needed a way to take some of the blood in the well with him, although he had filled his flask and Elara's with some, that wouldn't last long. The flask of the others had been ruined in the battles they fought.

He remembered seeing some barrels outside the castle earlier, hopefully some of them should still be useable.